Transcript Housing Chronically Homeless People in Single Site Projects NAEH Annual Conference Washington, DC Monday, July 17, 2006

Housing Chronically
Homeless People in
Single Site Projects
NAEH Annual Conference
Washington, DC
Monday, July 17, 2006
Presenters
 Matthew Doherty, CSH-Resource Center
(San Diego)
 Katrina Van Valkenburgh, CSH-Illinois Program
(Chicago)
 Kevin Sharps, Episcopal Community Services
(San Francisco)
 Steven Shum, CSH-California Program
(Oakland)
1
CSH’s Mission
CSH helps communities
create permanent housing
with services to prevent and
end homelessness.
2
Where We Work
 Local offices in Rhode Island,
Connecticut, New York, New Jersey,
Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Minnesota,
California.
 Targeted initiatives in Kentucky, Maine,
Oregon, and Washington.
 CSH’s national teams assist supportive
housing practitioners across the U.S.
3
Outline
1.
2.
3.
4.
Defining Permanent Housing
Preparing for Tenants’ Challenges
Effective Service Strategies
Effective Property Management
Strategies
5. Building Community Acceptance
6. Addressing Common Challenges in
Supportive Housing Operations
4
Questions
1. How many of you are currently serving
previously chronically homeless tenants in
permanent housing?
2. How many are considering developing
such a project?
3. How many work primarily on the property
management side?
4. How many work primarily on the supportive
services side?
5. Any urgent questions for us to address?
5
Defining Permanent
Supportive Housing
What is Supportive Housing?
Supportive housing is
permanent affordable housing
combined with a range of
supportive services
that help
people with special needs
live stable and
independent
lives.
7
Housing + Services
 HOUSING
– PERMANENT: Not time limited, not transitional;
– AFFORDABLE: For people coming out of
homelessness; and
– INDEPENDENT: Tenant holds lease with normal
rights and responsibilities.
 SERVICES
– FLEXIBLE: Designed to be responsive to tenants’
needs;
– VOLUNTARY: Participation is not a condition of
tenancy; and
– INDEPENDENT: Focus of services is on maintaining
housing stability.
8
Who is Supportive Housing For?
People who:
 Are chronically homeless
 Cycle through institutional and
emergency systems and are at risk of
long-term homelessness
 Are being discharged from institutions
and systems of care
 Without housing, cannot access and
make effective use of treatment and
supportive services
9
Who is Supportive Housing For?
People who:
 But for housing cannot access and make
effective use of treatment and supportive
services in the community;
and
 But for supportive services cannot access
and maintain stable housing in the
community.
10
Key Principles
 Affordability
 Safety and Comfort
 Support Services are Accessible,
Flexible, and Target Residential
Stability
 Empowerment and Independence
11
6 Dimensions of Best Practice
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
12
Housing Choice
Housing and Services Roles are Distinct
Housing Affordability
Integration
Tenancy Rights / Permanent Housing
Services are Recovery-Oriented and
Adapted to the Needs of Individuals
Evidence-Based Practice
 Consensus among experts and policymakers
 Responds to documented needs and
preferences of consumers
 Documentation of supportive housing
model(s) and agreement on (most) key
principles
 A growing body of evidence from research
13
Consistent Research Findings
Housing + Services Make a Difference
 More than 80% of supportive housing tenants are able to
maintain housing for at least 12 months
 Most supportive housing tenants engage in services,
even when participation is not a condition of tenancy
 Use of the most costly (and restrictive) services in
homeless, health care, and criminal justice systems
declines
 Nearly any combination of housing + services is more
effective than services alone
 “Housing First” models with adequate support services
can be effective for people who don’t meet conventional
criteria for “housing readiness”
14
Preparing for
Tenants’ Challenges
Preparing for Tenants’ Challenges
CASE STUDY – IN YOUR PACKET
QUESTION 1:
What are some of the challenges Margaret may
face as she tries to remain living stably in her new
apartment?
QUESTION 2:
What issues should the property management and
social services staff be prepared to address to
help ensure Margaret can be successful?
16
The Impact of Homelessness
 LOSSES: Homeless people risk losing everything that
made the world a safe, predictable and ordered place.
Some of these losses include:
 Loss of power








17
Loss of control over their lives
Loss of self-esteem and identity
Loss of pride
Loss of connection to people
Loss of support network
Loss of possessions
Lack of privacy, nutrition, sleep
Loss of routine
The Impact of Homelessness
FEELINGS
Fearful
Uncertain
Guilty
Shameful
Angry
Frustrated
Stigmatized
Worthless
18
BEHAVIORS
Protective, Hoarding
Guarded
Self-destructive
Isolated
Lashing Out
Needy
Sick
Unproductive
Effective Service
Strategies
Successful Service Philosophies




20
Housing First
Voluntary Services
Consumer-Driven / Client-Centered
Working with Substance Use and
Relapse
Developing the Service Program
 Deciding What Service to Provide
 With the vast array of services you could
provide in your housing, how do you
decide which you will actually offer?
 Types of Services
 Supportive Services Planning Worksheet:
Menu of Services Available to Tenants
21
Services Make the Difference



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

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Flexible and Voluntary
General Supportive Services
Independent Living Skills
Counseling
Health and Mental Health Services
Alcohol and Substance Use Services
Community-Building Activities
Vocational Counseling and Job
Placement
Services Program Standards




Service Program Design
Provider / Tenant Relations
Community Linkages
Property Management / Social Services
Relationship
 Crisis Prevention / Safety and Security
 Crisis and Emergency Protocols
 Recording and Reporting
23
Services in Supportive Housing
 Services critical in achieving residential
stability and maximizing independence:
 Assistance with budgeting, paying rent
 Access to employment
 Tenant involvement
 Medication monitoring and management
 Daily living skills training or assistance
 Medical and health services
24
Services in Supportive Housing
 Services critical in achieving residential
stability and maximizing independence:
 Counseling and support in achieving
self-identified goals.
 Assistance in meeting lease
obligations and complying with house
rules
 Referrals to other services or programs
 Conflict-resolution training
25
Engagement Strategies
Engagement sets the stage for
formal case management and
treatment sessions where in-depth
assessments, counseling, and
referrals can occur on an
individualized basis.
26
Goals of Engagement




Care for immediate needs
Develop a trusting relationship
Provide services and resources
Connect to mainstream services
and social networks to maximize
independence
 Helping people stay housed
27
Effective Engagement




Create the proper physical environment
Respect, accept and support people
Develop active listening skills
Let the tenant’s goals drive the services
offered
 Help people make informed choices
 Be consistent with repeated, predictable
patterns of interaction
 Engagement should be non-threatening
28
Effective Engagement
 Effective engagement for people with
mental health issues
 Effective engagement for people with
substance use issues
29
Effective
Employment
Strategies
CHETA Program
 October 2003 five communities received grants from
HUD and DOL through Ending Chronic
Homelessness through Employment and Housing
program.
 Bring together the local workforce development
systems and the permanent supportive housing to
increase employment outcomes for people who are
chronically homeless
 CHETA: CSH in partnership with Advocates for
Human Potential provide technical assistance to
these sites through the Chronic Homeless
Employment Technical Assistance Center
31
Lessons Learned
 In general, people with psychiatric disabilities in the
community have a 10% work participation rate (10%
are employed). In supportive housing, the rate goes
up to 20%, on average.
 If your building doesn't have at least 15-20%
working, you want to evaluate:
 Are you providing appropriate employment
services?
 Do you have barriers for your tenants in your
employment services that you're not aware of
(staff telling them they're not ready, etc.)?
32
Lessons Learned
 Don't wait!
 Employment can and should be something
discussed at outreach and intake
 Planning around employment should start
immediately upon entry into supportive housing.
 Many providers falsely believe that the tenants need
time to "settle in" before they can start thinking about
employment – but many have found it's easier to
begin discussing employment at time of move-in.
 Tenants may not begin work immediately, but talking
about employment helps normalize them in the new
environment faster, prevents some of the depression
and/or anxiety about moving in that might otherwise
occur.
33
Lessons Learned
 Tenants and people with psychiatric disabilities
overwhelming say they want to work.
 Supported employment has proven to be a
successful model across mental health and
substance abuse populations, gender, race, income,
and housing setting.
 Supported employment programs have reached 4060% employment rates.
 Supported employment includes competitive jobs;
rapid job entry (no long pre-vocational job readiness
or club house model); long-term wrap-around support
once placed in a job, without a time limit to that
assistance.
34
Lessons Learned
 Project in Indianapolis with a housing first/work first model for
street and shelter homeless has reached a 70+% employment
rate and a 50%+ retention rate at 6 months.
 As with approach to mental illness or substance use -- recovery
and maintenance will be a lifelong endeavor, and there will be
stumbling along the way - relapse is normal.
 It is a circuitous route, not a straight line from job readiness
training, to subsidized job, to unsubsidized job to long-term
retention.
 CSH's Next Step: Jobs program (3 cities, 27 sites for 3 years)
proved that employment is cost effective for all
parties: tenants, government, society as a whole. Tenants,
while taking an immediate loss in income (from less benefits),
had a bottomline net gain later on. Costs were returned to
government through reductions in benefits paid and increase in
taxes paid.
35
Employment Resources
CHETA website: www.csh.org/cheta
CHETA Listserve:
[email protected]
SAMHSA website (look for supported
employment under evidence based
practices): www.samhsa.gov
CSH website: www.csh.org
36
ECS’ Supportive
Services Strategies
Effective Property
Management
Strategies
Forms of Property Management
 Project sponsor owns the project or
leases the units and provides the
property management.
 Project sponsor owns the project but
contracts for property management
services from a property management
company.
 Project sponsor leases units from a
private property owner who continues to
manage the units.
39
Key Principles
of Property Management
 Principle 1: Property Management
Supports Mission-Driven Housing
Shared commitment to the success of
the community and each of the tenants
that resides in the building.
Shared commitment to coordinated
communication between social
services, property management and
tenant organizations.
40
Mission-Driven
Property Management
 “Double Bottom Line”
 Implement key practices related to:
 Development, enforcement of house rules
 Collaborative approaches to tenant
selection and screening, move-in,
orientation and crisis management
 Resident councils
 Creation of job opportunities for tenants
 Record-keeping
 Evictions and problem-solving
41
Key Principles of
Property Management
 Principle 2: Establish clear roles and
responsibilities
Commitment to clear roles and
responsibilities for all stakeholders.
KEY PRINCIPLE #3
Establishment of ongoing forum(s)
for talking about and re-negotiating
roles and responsibilities.
42
Key Principles of
Property Management
 Principle 3: recognize overlap and builtin tension between roles
 Respect for the different roles of
social service provider, property
KEY
PRINCIPLE
#3
manager,
owner
and tenant
council;
Each is necessary and important for a
well-managed building.
 Acknowledgment and productive use
of the built-in tension between these
roles/functions.
43
Overlapping Roles
and Responsibilities
 Supportive services goals and
responsibilities
 Property management goals and
responsibilities
 Goals that all staff have in common and
mutually support
44
Overlapping Roles
and Responsibilities
 Areas of Overlap Between Property Management
and Support Services Functions
 Intake: Tenant Selection and Interviewing
 Orientation of Incoming Tenants
 Rent Payment and Arrears

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45
Dealing with Disruptive Behaviors
Procedures in Crisis
Tenant Grievance Procedures
Tenant Council
Community Building
ECS’ Property
Management
Strategies
Community
Acceptance
Strategies:
The Six Steps
The Six Steps
 Intended to be a proactive,
comprehensive, collaborative, and
flexible approach
 A framework, not a formula
48
The Six Steps
 Step I: Assessment and Planning
 Step II: Political Strategy
 Step III: Building Active Community
Support
 Step IV: Dealing with Community
Concerns
 Step V: Legal Strategy
 Step VI: Public Relations/Media Strategy
49
Benefits




50
Fewer costs and delays.
Fewer fire drills and surprises.
More sense of your own power.
Increase likelihood of tenant
acceptance in community.
Step I –
Assessment and Planning
 Done early in the pre-development
process.
 Development team should meet with
loyal supporters (people who can keep
secrets before the project goes public)
to assess and plan.
 Assess what local government
approvals are needed, when, by whom.
 Assess process, criteria and timeline.
51
Purpose
 Separate the Unique from the Generic
 What is our organization’s reputation
in its county/jurisdiction?
 Who are the leaders in the community
and what is their knowledge of
supportive housing; experience with
our organization; knowledge and
experience with the population we are
serving?
52
What and Where
 What is “around” the site; history of the
neighborhood; who are the local
organizations.
 What are the neighbors’ issues going to
be.
 What are the potential legal issues.
 Where are we going to find supporters.
53
Developing Your Strategy
 Project may affect staffing needs, timeline
and budget.
 Step I must be done first
 Implementation of the remaining steps
occurs simultaneously
 The process is not linear.
 Expect your plans to change, but being
prepared, you will still have an
advantage.
54
Step II –
Political Strategy
 Assess the local government
 Elected officials, appointed officials, area
commissions, architectural review boards,
city/county/village administrators and staff.
 Timing is critical---harder to sway votes when
proposal is already surrounded by controversy.
 Ask the question: “If the vote were held tonight,
do I know what the outcome would be?”
 Identify solid supporters, uncertain votes and
opponents.
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Three Types of Situations
 Positive: Positive enough; make sure you
don’t lose votes
 Mixed: Persuade unknown votes, use
allies to move votes, secure votes you
think you have, determine strategies for
unknown
 Negative: Use law; peer to peer usually
works well
 Rest of planning will depend upon which
situation you are in, what votes you need
56
Step III –
Build Public Support
 Active, vocal community support will help
you get/keep political support, counter
your opponents, tell your story to the
media, and when appropriate say things
that the developer may not want to say.
 Second most often neglected step.
 Hard to make time for.
 Very valuable when there is a problem.
57
To Do
 Brainstorm potential supporters
 Think broad, wide and creatively of who
and how they can help
 Prioritize how much and what supporters
can/will do
 Recruit
 Get your foot in the door - ask potential
supporters to do something small before
the BIG ASK
 Train, support, mobilize, and deploy
58
Step IV – Dealing with
Community Concerns
 This is a critical and the MOST difficult
process
 It’s about relationship building
 Not everyone who asks a question is an
opponent--much less a permanent opponent
 Have an alternative to “community meetings”
for getting out and connecting to the
community
 Large meetings may help organize the
opposition
59
General Strategy
General Strategy
 Peel away the number of issues and
opponents so that you can tell opponents
compelling and true stories of your efforts
 In dealing with community concerns there
are always three things going on:
 Mutual education process
 Problem identification and solving
 Building relationships
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To Do
 Canvassing
 Open House
 One-on-one meetings, small home
meetings
 Tours
 Thank you letters and reminders
 Make no promises you’re not sure you
can fulfill
61
Step V –
Legal Strategy
 Can cover several topics:
 Any land use issues/zonings you’ll
need for the siting of the project
 Responses to opponents who base
opposition on discriminatory statements
or actions
 Fair housing and rights of tenants
62
Step VI –
Media Strategy
 Most reporters write the story that is
easiest to write
 Learn how to make the reporter’s job
easier to tell our story--do some of the
reporter’s work for him/her
 Use a prepared response strategy rather
than trying to go out and get stories
63
To Do
 Designate and prepare a spokesperson-include supporters and successful
clients/residents
 Develop a few clear and simple
messages and alternative stories for
interested reporters
 Prepare easily fax-able fact sheets
64
To Do
 Offer to give tours of existing
developments
 Give lists of references
 Follow-up on any coverage you get
with a thank you, a factual correction
 If coverage biased, supporters can
write letters to editor or op-ed pieces
 Develop ongoing friendly relationship
with media
65
ECS’ Community
Building
Experiences
BREAK!
Addressing Common
Challenges In
Supportive Housing
Operations
Deborah’s Place
Eviction Prevention
Program
Deborah’s Place
 Founded in 1985
 Serves women who were formerly
homeless
70
Deborah’s Place
Housing and programs include:
 Delores Safe Haven
 Teresa’s Interim Housing Program
 Permanent Supportive Housing
 Marah’s: 30 units
 Patty Crowley Apartments:
39 units
 Rebecca Johnson Apartments:
90 units
 Case Management and Therapeutic
Services
 Education and Employment Services
71
Deborah’s Place Mission
Deborah’s Place breaks the cycle of
homelessness for women in Chicago
through a continuum of housing options,
comprehensive support services and
opportunities for change provided by
dedicated volunteers and staff, women
succeed in achieving their goals of stable
housing, sustainable income and greater
self determination.
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Deborah’s Place Mission
73
Development of Eviction
Prevention Program
 Always part of Deborah’s Place unwritten
culture that they work with women who had not
been successful in other housing environments
 Eviction may at times be a sad necessity, but
defeats the agency’s mission and the agency’s
view of ending homelessness
 Deborah’s Place believes that eviction
continues the cycle of homelessness
74
Implementing
Eviction Prevention
Program
Homelessness
Prevention Specialist
 Assists women through the application and
interview process for Deborah’s Place housing
and subsidy and advocates for tenants at risk of
eviction
 When a tenant is at risk of eviction, this staff
person supplements their regular case
management services
 The tenant’s case manager stays in close
contact with the Homelessness Prevention
Specialist during this period of time
76
Intensive Case Management
 Intensive case management for first 3
months
 Case Managers work together to ensure
that all new tenants receive special
programming to assist them in adjusting
to housing
 Ideal is the moment the woman moves
into the building, her case manager or
homelessness prevention specialist are
there to greet her and help her move in
77
Committees
 Barring and Termination Prevention
Committee
 Oversees barring or termination from
all residential programs
 Eviction Prevention Committee
 Determines natural consequences for
lease violations
 Reviews all decisions made by the
housing team on lease violations
78
Eviction Prevention Committee
 Led by the Director of Supportive
Housing
 Includes:
Property Manager
Case Management Team
Chief Operating Officer (COO)
79
Lease Violation Process
 For when tenant is at-risk of eviction
 Eviction Request Form filled out by Property
Manager
 Tenant identifies their Advocate
 Form sent to tenant, COO, PM, HPS, Case
Manager and Tenant’s Advocate
 Tenant and Advocate present their case to
Eviction Prevention Committee
 Tenant may meet with the Eviction Prevention
Committee several times to review tasks and
progress
80
Eviction Prevention
Committee’s Recommendation
 Committee must write up their recommendation
which must include:
Lease Violation
Interventions staff has made to avoid eviction
 If the recommendation is to evict, they must
document how the eviction meets the mission
and values of the organization, how it is a
natural consequence for the behavior and why it
is the only option
 They can recommend consequences other than
eviction
81
Final Decision
 Committee makes recommendation to
Director of Supportive Housing and COO
who make final decision
 If the final decision is to go ahead with
eviction, the legal eviction process would
begin at this point
 If the final decision is not to evict, there
may be some requirements that the
tenant will need to comply with
82
The Results
 Fiscal Year 2002-2003: 10
women evicted from their
129 units of permanent
supportive housing in two
buildings
 Since implementing the
eviction prevention
program July 1, 2003,
Deborah’s Place has only
evicted 5 women during
these three years
 3 for unit abandonment
and 2 for nonpayment of
rent
83
Lessons Learned
 Having a hearing prior to implementing formal
eviction procedures gives an opportunity for the
tenant to take responsibility to correct their
behavior
 Shifting to an eviction prevention philosophy
can be difficult for staff
 Requires a lot of staff training and patience
 Staff who can’t buy in, have to leave, and this
can be painful
 Plan to do Harm Reduction training for tenants,
to help them understand this process
84
Addressing Other
Common Challenges
Questions and
Answers
&
Wrap Up
To Learn More
About Supportive
Housing
visit www.csh.org